NPR to Cut Staff by 10 Percent Through Buyouts

NPR buried the lede somewhat in announcing that it has found a temporary successor to its outgoing president and chief executive, Gary Knell. Nestled inside the press release announcing Knell’s replacement was the news that the public radio network intends to thin its payroll by one-tenth through a coming round of buyouts.

The network’s board of directors adopted a two-year plan to balance NPR’s budget, which for the 2014 fiscal year is projected to spend $183 million on revenues of $178 million. As part of the deficit-cutting measures, NPR will offer voluntary buyouts that affect all parts of the organization.

NPR had 840 employees in 2012, according to a network fact sheet, with news bureaus in 17 US cities and 17 foreign locations on top of its Washington headquarters.

As for the changing at the top, the NPR board tapped its vice chair, Paul G. Haaga Jr., to take over effective September 30 while a search committee looks for a permanent replacement for Knell, who is taking over at the National Geographic Society.

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Benjamin Freed joined Washingtonian in August 2013 and covers politics, business, and media. He was previously the editor of DCist and has also written for Washington City Paper, the New York Times, the New Republic, Slate, and BuzzFeed. He lives in Adams Morgan.